Lightning-arrester.



J. E. PETREE. LIGHTNING ARRESTBR.

APPLIoATIoN rum 1120.17, 1909.

968,402. 4 Patented Aug.23,1910.

j@ @vk/ 9 4f e fff'f' NI lx1; RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR 1o JAMES E.PETRER, OF RICHMOND, MISSOURI.

LIGHTNING-ARRESTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 23, 1910.

Application filed December 17, 1909. Serial No. 533,572.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES E. PETRER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Richmond, in the county of Ray and State of Missouri, haveinvented a new and useful LightningArrester, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention has reference to improvements in lightning arresters andis designed more particularly for use with telephone switchboards, theobject being to provide a lightning arrester whereby all the lines tothe switchboard may be grounded either individually or together.

The invention will be best understood from a consideration of thefollowing de tailed description taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in whichdrawings:

Figure l is a plan view of the lightning arrester showing the normalposition of the parts with the ground cut out. Fig. 2 is a similar viewto that of Fig. 1 but showing the position of the parts when the linesare all grounded. Fig. 3 is a view on the line A-B of Fig. 1 with theswitches omitted. Fig. 4 is a cross section on the line C-D of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings there is shown a base 1 which may be made ofporcelain, slate, or other suitable insulating and preferably refractorymaterial. The base 1 near one edge is provided with a longitudinalgroove 2 on its outer face and this groove is designed to receive aground conductor 3 to which reference will hereinafter be made. On thebase 1 there is mounted a block 4 which may also be made of porcelain orslate or other suitable insulating and preferably refractory material.The block 4has lodged therein near one edge two series of circuitterminals 5 and 6, each terminal 6 being close to but suitably spacedfrom a matching terminal 5. Each terminal 5 has formed thereon orsecured thereto, a conducting member' 7 extending beyond one edge of theblock 4 and these conductors 7 are designed to receive conductorsleading from the switchboard of a telephone eX- change where thelightning arrester is installed in connection with the switchboard orother conductors may lead to these inembers 7 when the lightningarrester is used in other locations than for the protection of atelephone switchboard.

Mounted on the block 4 are switch levers S, one for each terminal 5 andthese switch levers are so mounted as to be turned into engagement witha terminal 5 or with a terminal 6 as may be desired, the two terminalsbeing suitably located to each be in the path of a respective switch arm8. Near each end of the base 1 there is secured a bracket- 9.

Mounted on the base 1 is a bar 10 of slate or porcelain oi othersuitable and preferably refractory insulating material and this bar hasat each end a pin 11 having at the free end a head 12. Each bracket 9 istraversed by a pin 11, the bracket being provided with an elongated slot13 for the passage of the pin, the structure being such that the bar 10may have an extent of longitudinal movement which may be limited by theengagement of the head 12 with the bracket 9. The slots 13 permit afurther movement of the bar 10 in a direction to and from the block 4.One end of each lever 8 overrides the bar 10 and is there provided witha perforation for the passage of a pin 14 on the bar 10, there being aseries of pins` 14 one for each lever. Secured to the end of each lever8 where it overrides the bar 10, is a conductor 15 which may beconnected to or form the terminal of a line conductor when the lightningarrester is established in a telephone system. Each terminal 6 is continued through the block 4 and is connected to the ground conductor 3.

Assuming that the line conductors 15 are suitably connected to theswitches 8 and that the switchboard conductors are suitably connected tothe members 7 then by moving the bar 10 by means of a suitable knob 16or other manipulating device, all the switch levers 8 will be movedabout their pivots by the movement of the bar 10 since the latter isconnected to all the switch levers by the pins 14. 1f the movement ofthe bar 10 be in the proper direction, then those ends of the switchlevers remote from the ends connected to the conductors 15 will be movedonto the terminals 5 all at the same time and thereby circuits will beestablished from the switchboard through the members 7, thence by theterminals 5 to the switch levers and from the latter to the conductors15 and the telephone lines will thereby be properly connected with theswitchboard ready for other direction and the switch levers 8 will becaused to move from the contacts 5 onto the contact terminals 6 therebyestablishing circuits from each line wire 15 through a respective switch8 to a corresponding terminal 6 and thence by way of the groundconductors to ground. If, however, for any reason it be desirable tomaintain one or more of the line conductors in circuit to theswitchboard, then the end of the proper switch or switches 8 may belifted, the switch being suiiiciently elastic for the purpose, untilremoved from the pin 14 holding the switch lever to the bar l0 and thenthe switch lever may be moved in a direction which will cause it toengage the proper terminal 5 thus establishing the circuit between theline wire and the switchboard, while the other circuits are coupled toground. The reverse of course is also true, that is any one or more ofthe line wires may be grounded at the will of the operator without theother switches participating in the operation.

A structure built in accordance with the showing of the drawing willoperate successfully for the purposes of the invention, but it isevident that the invention is by no means limited to the structure shownin the drawings and therefore the invention includes such changes in thearrangement and proportion of parts and the materials employed as willnot cause a departure from the scope of the invention as expressed inthe claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A lightning arrester comprising a series of contact terminals eachconnected to a line to be protected, another series of contact terminalsadjacent to the first series and provided with a ground connection, aseries of switch levers movable individually into engagement with eitherseries of contacts and each connected to the line to be protected, andmeans for causing the simultaneous movement of all the switch leversinto engagement with either series of contact-s.

2. A lightning arrester comprising two series of contacts, one seriesbeing connected to the lines to be protected, and the other series beinggrounded, a series of switch levers movable into engagement with eitherseries of contacts, and each connected to a respective line to beprotected, and a common operating means for all the levers to which thelevers are individually and removably connected.

3. A lightning arrester comprising a suitable support, a series ofcircuit terminals carried thereby, another series of circuit terminalsadjacent to the rst named series and adapted to be grounded, a series ofswitch levers pivotally mounted on the support and movable intoengagement with either series of circuit terminals individually orcollectively, and an operating means for the levers comprising aslidable bar mounted on the support and removably connected to each ofthe switch levers.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aiiiXedmy signa ture in the presence of two witnesses.

JAMES E. PETREE.

litnesses:

.H. M. TOLAND,

PEARL SNoDGRAss.

